The Frankfurt Temple is Rededicated

The Frankfurt, Germany Temple was rededicated in three sessions on Sunday, October 20, 2019.  We were able to attend one of the sessions.  

What a joy to have a temple less than 30 minutes from where we live.  For the last 9 months we have had to drive more than 3 hours one way in any direction to be able to attend the temple.  

The Frankfurt Temple was originally dedicated in August of 1987.  In September of 2015 the temple was closed for renovation and enlargement.  Originally they felt the temple would only be closed for two years, but foundation issues were discovered and doubled the construction time to four years.  

Approximately 29,000 guests toured the temple during its public open house.  We are excited to be so close to a temple again.  

"There is nothing that has come or will come into your family as important as the sealing blessings." President Henry B. Erying

Visitors from Home❤️Part 2

Early Monday morning,  Lizzy, Sara and I caught the bullet train from Frankfurt to Paris.  Gary stayed home to do the humanitarian work- mission responsibilities.  The Area Humanitarian Committee was meeting and the couples we support needed help with their projects.

Next stop Paris

We arrived in Paris about 1:00 pm, made our way to our hotel, checked in, and then found our way to the Eiffel Tower. After the Eiffel Tower we went in search of Angelina Restaurant and Galeries Lafayette to do some shopping.  Angelina's was not found - but we did some serious shopping at Galeries Lafayette as well as took a few pictures outside the Louvee.

Day 2 - Was a trip to Versailles. The girls had found a mobile app that enabled us to buy our tickets, hire a guide and skip the lines. It was raining, but because of the app, we were in the rain for a very short time. The tour guide and the tour were both excellent. This was my second time visiting Versailles. I learned considerably more this time than using the audio guide on my previous trip.  The tour guide was well worth the extra money spent.

The line we skipped

After Versailles we went to lunch at the Angelina Restaurant in Versailles. Following lunch we visited Saint Chapelle.  Once again the app used to buy our tickets was very helpful. After visiting Saint Chappelle we went to see the outside of Notre Dame Cathedral.  It is still going through reconstruction, but we got a picture with it in the background.  After seeing the sights, the girls realized how close we were to Galeries Lafayette, so we went back to purchase a few more things to take home.

Day 3 - We had a tour scheduled for the Louvre.  The app, "Get Your Guide" did not disappoint.  We skipped all the lines and had a very informative 3-hour tour of the Louvre.   After the tour, we went to Cafe de la Comedies for lunch - excellent pizza.  The girls wanted to go to the Angelina in downtown Paris, so we went in search of Angelina.  Angelina was found, we stood in line, and had a delightful snack.

Once the snack was over we our their way to the Arc de Triomphe.  When we were there in June there was a protest going on, so we couldn't visit this historical monument.  This time we were able to go and once again the mobile app worked it magic.  We sailed through the lines.  Apparently there was an elevator, but somehow we missed it and climbed the circular staircase all the way up to the top. It was raining when we arrived, but by the time we had climbed the 200+ stairs the sun was out and the view was spectacular.  We took pictures and observed the city from all sides of the rooftop.  Of course, what goes up must go down.  Just as we climbed the stairs back down the Changing of the French Guard was just beginning.  The Arc de Triomphe honors those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.  Beneath its vault, lies the Tomb of the Unknown Solider from World War I.  We decided that we did not need to go back to Galeries Lafayette so we returned to the hotel as we were leaving very early the next morning to return to Frankfurt.

Day 4 - The hotel recommended that we take a taxi to the train station rather than taking the metro.  I  told the taxi driver the name of the train station - not knowing that there was more than one train station.  He took us to Gare du Nord (the one I told him) but we needed to be at Gare de l'Est. We had to ride the metro train one stop to the correct station.  This is where we learned why the hotel recommended taking a taxi.  The metro was packed - we had to fight our way through the crowd to get off the train. We went upstairs to the train station where we caught the train, arriving in Frankfurt about 1:00pm.  

From the main train station we took the U-bahn train back to the apartment and unpacked.  After a quick drive to see the Frankfurt temple we all went out for dinner.

Friday afternoon we drove the girls to the Frankfurt Airport.  They caught their plane which took them to Amsterdam where they connected with a flight directly to Salt Lake City.

It was a delight to have them visit.  There is so much to see and do.  They will have to come back again. They assured us that they had a good time. Their families were glad to have them back home.

"Hanging out with your adult children, is like visiting with the most beautiful and precious parts of your life."  Project Forgive



 

Visitors from Home❤️

Two of our daughters braved the long flight from Utah and came to see us.  We had a great time.  They arrived on a Sunday, we spent our first week taking them somewhere in Germany every day.

Day 1 Koblenz/Deutsche Eck - We rode the Gondola up to the Fortress and back.  Then we visited the town of Koblenz for a while and drove to the little town of Cochem in the Rhine Valley to do some shopping.

Day 2  - Rüdesheim  did the "Ring Tour".  This involves taking a cable car up the mountain, hiking 3 km across the mountain through a small forest, riding a chair lift down the mountain, and catching a boat back up the Rhein River to the original starting point in Rüdesheim.

Day 3 - Downtown Frankfurt and riding on the U-bahn (the city train system).

Day 4 - Bad Wildbad/Tree Top Walk in the Black Forest - The tree top walks are not available in the USA. You walk up to the top of the structure (40 meters high and above the trees) and have the option of taking the slide or walking down. It's a great activity.

Day 5 - Rothenburg- Käthe Wohlfahrt Christmas Stores and the "Night Watchman Tour" - a very fun historical walk around the town of Rothenburg.  The Night Watchman has been doing this tor for 27 years - very professional, informative and entertaining.  

After the Rothenburg and the Night Watchman tour we returned to Frankfurt.  We watched conference, did laundry, and prepared for their second week of adventures (a trip to Paris).

"In reality, we are raising our children in enemy-occupied territory.  The homes of our members must become the primary sanctuaries of our faith, where each can be safe from the sins of the world."  Russell M. Nelson, Teachings of Russell M. Nelson